Bach. Beethoven. Chopin. Great music for piano students, to be sure, and I love playing them. But the music that got me really excited when I was a kid and first taking piano lessons – the music that made me want to practice until my mom made me stop and go to bed – was the pop music my friends and I were listening to. Elton John, Carole King, and a little later on, Billy Joel, were creating such an exciting sound for the piano. Who hasn’t heard Scenes from an Italian Restaurant and wanted to be a piano player?

While other budding musicians in the ’70s and ’80s were emulating the great rock drummers of the era and working on playing the guitar licks of Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton, I was trying to sound like session musician Nicky Hopkins (The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks) and Rick Wakeman (Yes). What a great feeling when a friend told me I sounded “just like the Cat Stevens record” when I played Morning Has Broken!

I know most think of guitar, bass and drums as the instruments of choice in pop and rock music and think of the piano in terms of classical and jazz performances. But artists from Jerry Lee Lewis andRay Charles to Stevie Wonder and Carly Simon to Ben Folds, Alicia Keys and Sara Bareilles have ensured that the piano has its place in great pop and rock performances throughout the last 50 years. What do you think is the greatest piano performance of all time?

The drumming community is unlike any other. Go to any drum festival, conference, or event and you’ll hear countless stories of the great drummers of the past and present sharing the tradition with younger players and how the art form has been passed down through the many great teachers. There is a camaraderie among players of all levels that seems to go unmatched.

We are fortunate to have a wealth of inspiration and rich history to draw from. So many beautiful players with unique voices, expressed through a vast array of tones emanating from cymbals and drums. Drumming is unique in that one person’s sound is greater than the sum of its parts – it’s the combination of that person’s touch on the cymbals, hi-hat, snare, bass drum, and toms. In this case, 1+1+1=4. When asked “what drummers have influenced you most,” I think all drummers would agree that the list is long. When I think back on my development as a drummer, there are a couple that stand out like signposts.

I played in the school band from fourth grade through high school. While in middle school, my band director said, “Check this out,” as he moved the needle over a spinning piece of vinyl. When he dropped that needle, everything changed. It was David Garibaldi playing on Soul Vaccination with the Tower of Power. Drumming was already a huge part of my life, but now it was something I had to do. At this point David had left the band and so there was little hope to ever hear this live. Many years later, however, I got my chance to hear him with the Tower of Power when he rejoined the band for their 30th Anniversary Tour.

A couple years later, when I was in high school, I had the radio tuned to a regular evening jazz program. It was a decent program, featuring a good number of different artists from various periods, the majority of which sounded very “safe.” Then came a sound that grabbed my attention and moved me closer to the speakers. It was like raw expression, unhindered and not smoothed out and polished for commercial appeal. What needed to be said was more important than industry conventions and traditional forms. John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme was recorded in 1964 and featured Elvin Jones on drums, with his fantastic open, rolling sound that was as nuanced as it was powerful. I was fortunate to catch him on a couple occasions and his sound, his movements and his smile are permanently seared into my memory.

Another signpost for me was a Miles Davis album recorded live at Philharmonic Hall, also in 1964. It showcased the talents of another voice that has shaped jazz drumming. A young Tony Williams, student of the highly regarded teacher Alan Dawson, was only 18 years old when this was recorded. The tunes were split into two albums – all the up-tempo tunes were released as ‘Four’& More and the ballads were assembled into My Funny Valentine. These have since been combined and became available as The Complete Concert. It’s impossible to summarize the influence of Tony’s playing. I’ll just say this: he had a seemingly endless spring of well-developed musical ideas, and his phrasing and sound are unparalleled.

Peter Erskine’s appearance on over 500 recordings (not to mention an untold number of concerts, clinics, educational books, DVDs and more) has certainly cemented his place as one of the most influencial drummers of our time. My first introduction to his playing came long before I ever picked up the sticks as my dad kept the Stan Kenton Orchestra in heavy rotation at our house. I discovered one of the great drummers who occupied that chair years later when I heard 8:30 – a live recording by the legendary group Weather Report. Peter’s time playing is beautiful, agile, amazingly expressive and full of creativity. He has also graciously given me feedback as I’ve worked with Gary Chaffee to bring back his patented bass drum muffler.

And there are so many more. I could share countless stories of how others have influenced me and I’m grateful for their passion and commitment to the art form.

Next time, we’ll look at some of the great teachers that have dedicated themselves to passing along the language to the next generation. In the meantime, what artists stand out as your musical signposts?

Affordable, easy, and good. The general rule of thumb is “Pick 2.” If you want something cheap and easy, it won’t be good. If you want it affordable and good, it’s not going to be easy. If you want something easy to use and of high quality, it won’t come cheap. This is definitely true when it comes to building a home studio.

Well, it WAS true.

With Hal Leonard’s Studio-In-A-Box Artist Edition, you’ll be able to make your own studio quality multi-track recordings with ease. And with a street price of well under $250, you won’t break the bank in the process.

The kit comes with (almost) everything you need; the M-Audio Fast Track interface, a USB cable, an M-Audio SoundCheck microphone, a mic clip, a mic cable, Yamaha headphones, a startup guide by Bill Gibson, and recording software. But not just any software…ProTools, the recording industry standard!

I know a lot of people may have reservations about recording with their computer. They may think they don’t have enough memory, or enough hard drive space, or a powerful enough CPU. I had the same concerns, but went ahead and began the installation anyway. Now, keep in mind, I have a 4 year old Dell laptop LOADED with other software like Photoshop CS3 and CS5, Lightroom 3, Adobe Illustrator, firewalls, antivirus software, a bunch of MP3’s, plus all of the other stuff I can’t even remember right now.

In under an hour I was up and recording my first tracks.

Everything included in this pack is extremely easy to use. For the more complex components, like the software, never fear, because there is an EXTENSIVE tutorial on nearly every aspect of the program. Add this to the invaluable information included in Bill Gibson’s Step-By-Step Setup Guide, you’ll be wondering why you waited so long to start down the path of home recording.

So, what have we got here? We’ve got:

Everything you need to start recording your music

Reliable, quality components

More affordable and easier than anyone could imagine

But it’s not perfect. Then again, what is? I do have a few gripes, though some are nobody’s fault but my own:

A newer, more robust computer would probably eliminate the glitches I would occasionally encounter during playback. The good news: I would simply save then restart the session, and all my work was still there, and most importantly, working just fine.

The 16 track limit will only become a problem if your imagination lends itself to incredibly complex arrangements. Out of the gate, this probably won’t affect too many people. As your needs grow, you may need to consider an upgrade. More good news: you only need to upgrade your software, not every other component of your studio.

A mic stand is essential unless all you’re going to do is hold the microphone and sing each of your tracks. For you A Cappella artists out there, that’s not a problem, but if you want to record an instrument by yourself, you’re going to need that stand.

This package isn’t just about its pluses and minuses, it’s about you. You’re a music fanatic and have been for as long as you can remember. Whether banging on pots and pans or playing air guitar with the broom when you were younger, you listened to your favorite songs over and over. You dreamed of one day being on stage in front of thousands of screaming fans playing YOUR #1 hit. The creation of that hit has to start somewhere, and the Hal Leonard Studio-In-A-Box Artist Edition is a fantastic option. Affordable, easy and good; now you really can have it all.

In this 5 part video series, our own Ryan Blauvelt sits down with legendary recording engineer and producer, Ken Scott. Ken has worked with famous acts from The Beatles to Bowie. Ken tells all about his musical journeys in his new book, Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust. It’s a must-read for any fan of The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Elton John and many more influential musicians from our time and times gone by. Ken goes in-depth with personal stories of recording these musicians in the the famous Abbey Road studio and explains some of the technical challenges he faced. You’ll find yourself reading page after page, as his writing style keeps you engaged with each word.

Keep a look out for the next 4 parts as we post them throughout the week.

Check out our photos from this year’s Telluride Blues and Brew Festival from beautiful Telluride, Colorado. Acts included Little Feat, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, The B-52′s, Anders Osborne, and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead. Enjoy!

This year’s Farm Aid Festival took place in our own backyard, Hershey, Pennsylvania. Take a look at some pics from the one-day event, which supports farms and farmers across the U.S. As always, Willie Nelson headlined the concert, with supporting acts Neil Young and Crazy Horse, John Mellencamp, Lukas Nelson, Grace Potter, Kenny Chesney, Dave Matthews and Jack Johnson.